A zen story: A zen teacher named Hakuin lived in a small hut outside of a village. He had a great reputation and was liked by all. One day a poor young woman in the village became pregnant and lied to her parents. She told them Hakuin was the father. After the baby was born…

I did a series on the classic text “The 37 Practices of a Bodhisattva” for Patheos. I’ve linked all of the articles here. I had a good experience delving deeply into this important text and I hope you will too. 37 Practices of A Bodhisattva: Introduction January 1, 2018 A Bodhisattva is one who strives to…

Bodhicitta is the quality that drives away the suffering in ourselves and others. “Bodhi” means awake, free from delusion. “Citta” means mind. So this is about the mind of awakening that we’re trying to develop and strengthen. The way of the Bodhisattva is the way of compassion and wisdom, of realizing your own boundless potential.…

In “Way of the Bodhisattva” Shantideva starts going through the six perfections, our method for practicing the bodhisattva path. This section is only going to be about the first five. The sixth perfection, the Perfection of Wisdom, is something we will be saving for later. The teaching of the Six Paramitas was created early in…

This dharma talk was recorded in my home in Kansas City, Missouri on 1/11/18. If you enjoyed this post, feel free to make a donation here. I’m a struggling writer and every little bit helps, even just a dollar or two. Thank you. Donate

In the 8th century a student went to visit the great master Ma-tsu. The master asked, “Why have you come here?” And the student replied, “I seek enlightenement.” The master said, “Why go out to see it and forget that you have the treasure already? I have nothing to give you.” The student said, “But…

These are my latest articles at Patheos: Buddhist. Check them out! Shantideva on the First Five Perfections In “Way of the Bodhisattva” Shantideva starts going through the six perfections, our method for practicing the bodhisattva path. This section is only going to be about the first five. The sixth perfection, the Perfection of Wisdom, is…

Awakening and freedom. That’s what the path is all about. Enlightenment really just means awareness, seeing things as they really are. Reality unfiltered. The world as it is instead of as we think it is. We come to enlightenment by freeing ourselves of the three poisons; greed, hatred, and delusion. We free ourselves by transforming…